Automatic stop mechanism for wire drawing machine



y 1956 E. E. PHILLIPS ETAL 2,744,692

AUTOMATIC STOP MECHANISM FOR WIRE DRAWING MACHINE Filed Aug. 19, 1954 INVENTORS. EDWARD E. PH/LL/PS and JAMES M SHATT/NG,

Meir Attorney.

coiling reel.

United Etates Patent 1v 2,744,692 AUTOMATIC STOP MECHANISM FOR WIRE DRAWING MACHINE Edward E. Phillips, Pittsburg, and James V. Shatting,

Concord, Calif., assignors to United States Steel Corporation, a corporation of New Jersey Application August 19, 1954, Serial No. 450,992 3 Claims. (Cl. 242-78) The present invention relates to wire drawing machines and more particularly to apparatus for automatically stopping the coiling reel of a wire drawing machine when the desired amount of wire has been accumulated on the reel or when the strand of wire being coiled breaks.

Present day wire drawing machines are frequently provided with automatically actuated mechanisms for stopping the machine when a predetermined size coil of wire has been wound on the coiling reel. This feature makes operation of the machine safer and also facilitates the operation of several machines by a single workman.

During the operation of a wire drawing machine, a

dangerous hazard is created in the event of a break in the wire strand being wound on the coiling reel. Serious injuries have been caused by the severed end of the broken wire strand as it is whipped around the rotating In order to eliminate this safety hazard, some wire drawing machines have been designed with devices incorporated therein which stop the operation of the machine automatically in the event the wire strand is severed.

Both of the above-described stopping mechanisms have been individually developed and are utilized separately so that it is necessary to equip a wire drawing machine with both devices in order to provide stopping means effective when the wire coil has reached desired size and when the wire strand breaks. Prior to our invention,

- no single stop mechanism had, to our knowledge, been developed which would be actuated by both the accumulation of the desired size wire coil on the reel or a break in the wire strand.

It is, accordingly, an object of our invention to provide a device utilizing a simple electric circuit, for automatically stopping a wire drawing machine when a predetermined size coil of wire is wound on the coiling reel or when the wire being wound on the reel is broken.

This and other objects will become more apparent after referring to the following specification and attached drawing, in which the single figure is an elevation view of a wire drawing block provided with the stopping device of the invention, the electric circuit of which is shown diagrammatically.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, reference numeral 2 designates the metal base of a wire drawing block on which is rotatably mounted a vertical coiling reel 4. A motor 6 is provided for rotating the reel 4 by means of conventional gearing (not shown).

A conductor rod 8, made of suitable electrical conducting metal, is disposed in upright position on the base 2 adjacent the reel 4. A contact arm 10, also made of electrical conducting metal, is affixed to the rod8 by means of a clamp 12, which is also an electrical conductor, and which is adapted to be adjusted along the length of the rod. The contact arm 10 projects from the rod 8 toward the coiling reel in the path of a coil of wire 0" being wound thereon and is provided with a spring 14 mounted on the outer end portion thereof. This resilient arrangement on the end of the contact arm permits the coil C to be stripped from the reel without the necessity of moving the main body of the contact arm.

The lower end of the conductor rod 8 is threaded and passes through holes in a hold-down plate 16 and Micarta block 18 to which it is attached by means of nuts 20, one bearing against the top of plate 16 and the other 2,744,692 Patented May 8, 1956 against the bottom of block 18. The plate 16 and block 18 are fastened to the base 2 by means of bolts 22 and nuts 24. Fiber tubes 25 surround the shafts of the bolts 22 and in conjunction with the block 18 insulate the conductor rod 8 from the base 2. The hold-down plate 16 is preferably coated with an electrical insulating compound. I

The electric circuit E of our invention is supplied with power from power lines L1 and L2 through a transformer 27 which reduces the voltage from 115 volts A. C. to 12 volts. I

The electric circuit E includes a ground connection 26 which is preferably on the base 2, a relay coil in the form of a solenoid 28 and the conductor rod 8 connected in series. The circuit is normally open between the ground connection 26 and the conductor rod 8. The relay coil 28 actuates normally closed contacts 28c which are connected in a motor control circuit 30 which controls the operation of motor 6. I

In operation, the solenoid 28 is normally deenergized and the contacts 28c closed allowing current to flow to the motor 6 through the motor control circuit 30. As the wire is wound on the rotating coiling reel, it is held down by means of a rider ring 32 which rests upon the top of the coil and rises with it is the coil grows on the reel. When the rider ring reaches and contacts the contact arm 10, the electric circuit E is closed, thus energizing solenoid 28. Contact between the arm 10 and the ring 32 provides the ground connection completing the closing of electric circuit E. This opens the normally closed contacts 280 and shuts off the flow of current to the motor control circuit 30 and motor 6 which causes the reel 4 to stop rotating. After removal of the coil C from the reel 4, the circuit E is opened which causes contacts 28c to close and thus permits current to pass through motor control circuit 30 to the motor 6.

The position of the contact arm 10 may be changed to accommodate various size coils of wire by adjusting the clamp 12 along the length of the conductor rod 8.

In the event that the wire strand being wound on the reel is severed, the broken end of the wire will whip around the reel as it rotates and make contact with the conductor rod 8. This causes circuit E to close and the motor 6 to stop in the manner described above.

While one embodiment of our invention has been shown and described, it will be apparent that other adaptations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the following claims.

We claim:

1. In a wire drawing block having a vertical coiling reel, a motor for rotating said reel, and a motor control circuit for controlling the operation of said motor, the combination therewith of an electrical conductor rod extending upwardly adjacent said reel, 21 contact arm attached to and projecting from said conductor rod toward said reel in the path of a coil being wound thereon, an electric circuit including said conductor rod, a ground connection, and a relay coil in series, and normally closed contacts operable by said relay coil, said contacts being connected in said motor control circuit.

2. In a wire drawing block the combination therewith as defined by claim 1 characterized by said contact arm being adjustable along the length of said conductor References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Morgan Feb. 27, 1945 Nye Sept. 5, 1952 

1. IN A WIRE DRAWING BLOCK HAVING A VERTICAL COILING REEL, A MOTOR FOR ROTATING SAID REEL, AND A MOTOR CONTROL CIRCUIT FOR CONTROLLING THE OPERATION OF SAID MOTOR, THE COMBINATION THEREWITH OF AN ELECTRICAL CONDUCTOR ROD EXTENDING UPWARDLY ADJACENT SAID REEL, A CONTACT ARM ATTACHED TO AND PROJECTING FROM SAID CONDUCTOR ROD TOWARD SAID REEL IN THE PATH OF A COIL BEING WOUND THEREON, AN ELECTRIC CIRCUIT INCLUDING SAID CONDUCTOR ROD, A GROUND CONNECTION, AND A RELAY COIL IN SERIES, AND NORMALLY CLOSED CONTACTS OPERABLE BY SAID RELAY COIL, SAID CONTACTS BEING CONNECTED IN SAID MOTOR CONTROL CIRCUIT. 